Hikari wondered if it would become a habit of theirs, meeting early at the training grounds. She gave a smile to Sasuke and settled on the ground.
She reached out for her ankles. She inhaled and folded to her toes as she exhaled. People thought that, the day after a hard stretching session, you'd be able to go further. The opposite was true. Your body was sore, overtaxed. She had woken up early to jog around the compound and do a small foam rolling session. Still, she'd have to stretch carefully to be able to move normally.
She moved to straddle and lowered her torso. Her inner thighs screamed. She put her forearms on the ground instead and rested her head on her hands, looking forward. Sasuke was already looking at her. She raised an eyebrow in question.
"I can show you the combo now," he offered.
"Yeah, I'd like that. What do you think we'll do with Kakashi-sensei?" she asked as she stood up.
"Taijutsu."
She hummed in agreement and faced him.
"It starts with a roundhouse kick off the ground. Your opponent will try to grab it. You punch with the opposite hand, pulling the force from your shoulder. It will rotate your body. You follow with a kick, until you are upside down. They'll either be hit or drop you."
"Alright. Am I trying it with you?"
He nodded. She'd have to put on some speed to the roundhouse, then. Sasuke didn't weight a lot more than her, which meant his grip wouldn't support the twist as well. She wondered how he'd practiced.
She stepped close and waited for him to nod at her again. Hikari whirled into the kick. His hand closed around her ankle. She was already twisting, shoulder driving the movement. Instead of a fist, she clasped her hand on his. He let her, grip tight. She was upside down, leg moving towards his face. He blocked with his forearm without letting go of her hand and then released her. She completed the twist and came down on a crouch.
"You could do it faster. And with a punch."
She nodded and they went from there.
It didn't take long until Sasuke was satisfied. They settled on some easy warm up stretches. They didn't know how long their sensei would be and it wouldn't do to tire themselves before he even arrived. When she noticed him looking at some of the variations, she noted out their form aloud. He didn't do most of them, not having the same range of motion as she did. Still, it was a comfortable semi-silence that Naruto walked in on.
"Naruto-san," she greeted.
"Hikari. Teme."
"Dobe."
She left them to it and went over to finish stretching.
"Good morning! Sorry I'm late, I had to feed my dogs." Kakashi eye-smiled at them.
Naruto clenched his fists.
"Sasuke and Hikari, come here. I think you can work as fighting partners, but you first need to know each other's moves. Naruto, warm up. We'll correct some of your stances."
The three of them moved.
Sasuke and Hikari faced off. When no other instructions came from the older shinobi, they nodded to each other. Sasuke charged.
"Stop!" Hikari gasped out.
Sasuke's movements stuttered to a halt. He frowned. He wasn't even touching her right now. She hadn't complained when the hits had landed, so why stop now?
"Do that thing again. The spinning hook kick. Slowly."
Again, she ducked under it and moved as if to land a punch to his chest.
"As you hook your leg, you can grab me instead of blocking. You have more leverage than me and are heavier."
His eyes lit up in understanding. He grabbed her fist with one hand and her shoulder with the other. She could no longer dodge. As his leg came down, he went into a squat, and spun. She was air-bone and then flat on her back on the grass. He had moved with her, softening her fall.
"Why?"
"The point is for both of us to improve. To fight together."
He nodded shortly. "One more time?"
She nodded. This time, his movements were fluid. She didn't have a lot of time before she was focusing on falling without hurting herself.
He smirked. She returned his smile and they were at it again.
Next time, he was the one who stopped them. "You're faster. You have the time to hit instead of always dodging. Get inside my guard."
They were both trying to catch their breath when they heard Naruto's clones yell in unison. "I'm bored, Kakashi-sensei."
They turned. Multiple Naruto's were on various point of an Academy kata. Kakashi was calling out corrections from behind his book.
He closed his novel. It was midday.
"Let's switch it up. Naruto and Sasuke, spar. Hikari, with me."
"I heard you wanted to use poisons," Kakashi eyed her.
"Yeah. Ino and I were talking about it. We're good at taijutsu, but we don't do a lot of damage when we land a hit."
"It's smart. The next two weeks, we'll be working with Team 10 so Asuma and I can teach you girls. Have you thought on what weapon?"
"I don't think senbons are for me."
"You get too close for them to be launched with force."
"Ino suggested a neko-te fingernail."
Kakashi's eyebrow rose. "It's a good choice. Quite deadly."
"Easy to disguise," she offered.
He nodded. "Let's work on getting you to take your opponent's openings. You can't hesitate to go in. With the neko-te, you won't have to hit hard, but you'll need to land a blow and pierce skin, or at least scratch it."
"Sasuke, with me. Get out your shurikens. Hikari and Naruto, spar together. Naruto, no clones."
Fighting Naruto was completely different from fighting Sasuke. They both charged in, but Sasuke's strikes were clean and precise. Naruto's were powerful, many, and kept on coming. She focused on evading, just trying not to get hit. The longer it stretched out, the more Naruto got frustrated. I have to make a move soon. I'm getting tired and slower, and he isn't. How is he still going strong? He launched himself at her, trying to pin her down. Hikari lowered herself to the ground, rolling on her back as if to do a kip up. Instead of launching herself back up, she used her feet to propel him over her head. He slammed into the ground. Hikari picked herself up, panting, and turned. Naruto was back on his feet, his hands forming seals. She backed up warily as a clone came into existence.
A kunai stabbed into the clone and, as quickly as it came into being, it was nothing but smoke.
"Naruto! I said no clones!"
Between one breath and the next, Kakashi was between them. Hikari blinked. Hadn't he been over by the targets? She glanced over Kakashi's shoulders. Sasuke was walking towards them, still a way off. As he rejoined them, their sensei announced, "Training is over. Tomorrow, we're back on missions."
They nodded. Hikari wanted to lay on the grass and not move for a while but headed home. She would have lunch and then go to the gym with the hoop. I need to learn that sequence before tomorrow's session.
DAY THREE
Hikari greeted Sasuke. "Do you want to do some throwing practice?"
"Hn."
This way, I'm not tired for today's training with Sota.
When Naruto joined them, he goaded Sasuke into a spar. Hikari stayed at the posts, working on her aim. Sasuke was extremely precise, and had given her a few tips on how to flick her wrist. He had seemed surprised at how quickly she got the movement right. She rolled her eyes. She was skilled at ribbon, and some wrist motions translated over.
"Good morning!"
The three of them stopped what they were doing and walked over. Today, Kakashi didn't even bother with an excuse. He just walked them to the Mission Desk. Naruto was vibrating with excitement. Does he actually think we'll get something different from D-rank? Maybe he thinks this one will be more thrilling?
Hikari had to admit that getting to see Naruto be dragged through the village by an Inuzuka dog was way more fun than taking inventory. She didn't think Naruto agreed. She was sure Sasuke, too, had enjoyed it more than the one that followed. Helping old people carry their groceries home could be rewarding for some. Those people weren't Sasuke or her. She didn't mind it, but she didn't know the old man. Apart from basic courtesy, any goodwill she may have given dried up at his treatment towards Naruto. He didn't say anything, but all of his conversation was directed towards the other two genin. Faced with Sasuke's silence, Hikari's frigid politeness, and their sensei's book, he had given up and directed them towards his house.
DAY FOUR
Kakashi handed her a book on poison handling and settled next to her with his book. She was glad that she, unlike the boys, wouldn't be doing taijutsu. Her body was still sore from Sota's lesson.
Naruto and Sasuke's task was to dispel Kakashi's clone. They kept going off on their own instead of fighting together. By the end of the day, they had worked together, fought individually against the clone, and fought each other. All of them more than once. Hikari was tired, and she was only glancing at them between chapters.
DAY FIVE
The sun scorched her skin as she continued to pull on weeds. She had taken off her jacket as it neared noon. Her bodysuit was lightweight and its long-sleeves protected her arms. She wiped the sweat from her face as she regarded their progress. They were almost done. She was glad, she wanted out of this woman's garden.
What's her problem with Naruto? So, he had pulled a couple of flowers before he'd figured out which ones were weeds. It wasn't ideal, but Naruto learned quickly. The only reason they were almost done was because of his unending energy and persistence. The woman had no reason other than nastiness to have yelled at him.
She checked on her teammate. He, too, had taken off his jacket and tied it at his waist. His head was down, even when he wasn't pulling weeds.
"Naruto-san," she called as she made her way over to him. Kakashi-sensei glanced over to them from where he was disposing of the last weeds. She just smiled at him.
"Hikari?" Naruto questioned. Outside of training, they hadn't really engaged much.
"Had you ever met our client before?"
"No," he looked down again.
"Then keep your head high and your shoulders back," she said sharply. Naruto looked at her, startled. "I don't know why people who don't know you act like that. You haven't wronged them. Their behavior is disgraceful. But it's their shame, not yours. It's everyone else's - the people who treat you this way and the people who let it stand. It's mine, for not noticing sooner." She bowed in apology.
She didn't wait for an answer. "I think we're done here. Kakashi-sensei? Sasuke-san?"
"Done," Sasuke grunted.
Naruto seemed unconvinced and was still slumped over. Hikari frowned. She reached over and ran a finger from Naruto's shoulder blades down his spine, ignoring his sweat. Naruto instantly straightened. Blue eyes met hazel and then she was on the receiving end of a sunshine smile. She smiled back to him. I'll try harder. I'll be a better teammate.
Kakashi-sensei put a hand on her head and steered them back to the Mission Desk to receive their next mission.
DAY SIX
As she twirled, she shifted her grip from the end of the stick to just below where wood met hook. She completed the turn and threw the apparatus. The ribbon streaked away from her in a straight line. The distance between them drew wider. She caught the very end of the satin piece and did a chaîné turn. Her arm drew one and half circles, ribbon trailing behind. The stick followed after it, back towards her. She stretched her other arm in front of her and caught it. She closed her eyes. She'd caught it in the middle, instead of the end.
"You keep digging a hole for yourself. Deeper and deeper. Prove yourself!"
She started from the very top. Her arm rotated backwards from the shoulder. The ribbon drew a wide circle. She leaned back into a bridge and lifted her leg straight up into a split. She spun on her toes, one arm wrapped around her leg and the one holding the ribbon circling her ankle. She straightened and saw the knot.
"Sloppy. Are you even trying? Again!"
This time, her spin was perfect. As she straightened up from the pirouette, her arm went up and down her body, drawing sharp spirals in front of her. She leaned down, put a hand on the floor, and did a front walkover. Her ribbon continued doing sharp spirals as she took a running start and her legs formed a split in the air. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she turned, shifted her grip, and threw. She caught the tail, did the circles, and with her other hand caught the middle of the stick.
"YOU'RE A COWARD! Commit yourself to the throw! Again!"
She went back to the middle of the floor and started from the beginning.
DAY SEVEN
"Why are you smiling so much?" Sasuke asked as she stretched in front of him.
"We're training with Team 10 today."
Sasuke froze.
"Didn't Kakashi-sensei tell you?" Hikari asked.
Sasuke shook his head.
"Ino and I want to add poison to our combat. I guess they thought it'd be easier to teach us both at once."
"Hn."
On the dot, they saw Team 10 and Naruto arrive from opposite sides.
Ino bounded up to them. Sasuke tensed, but the blonde passed him by as she tackled Hikari with a hug. After hugging her friend to death, Ino greeted Sasuke with a cheery 'Good morning, Sasuke-kun!' and settled next to her. Shikamaru sat on her other side, besides Chouji. Naruto was next. Asuma-sensei greeted all of them.
"We're going to wait on your sensei," Asuma announced.
Naruto groaned. "That could be hours!"
Asuma took a drag of his cigarette. "I have a feeling it won't be long. We have a mission." Naruto perked up. "We were going to start with training, but this mission needs two genin teams."
"What is it? What is it?"
Asuma winked at Naruto. "A surprise."
"Hikari! You haven't been by in a while. We should have another sleepover!"
She tried to bury the guilt building up on her. Between training with Kakashi and Sota, she hadn't had time to visit her friends. "Maybe I'm just fleeing from your snoring," she teased.
"Take that back! I don't snore!" Ino exclaimed with a worried glance at Sasuke.
Hikari grinned and turned to Shikamaru. "Careful on missions, everyone in the area will hear her."
"Troublesome. It could mean detection," Shikamaru played along with her.
"I don't snore! Chouji, tell them!"
"Ino doesn't snore," Chouji obeyed. He paused. "Much."
The three of them laughed at Ino's indignant yelp.
Asuma grinned. He was glad Kakashi had agreed to train their kunoichi together. His fellow jounin didn't specialize in it, but he knew more than Asuma about poisons. The Academy reports had him worried that Ino's infatuation with the Uchiha boy would interfere. Looks like he had nothing to be concerned about. Ino was more excited for Hikari's presence than the dark-haired boy's. He was coming to realize that, for his three genin, there was nothing more important than their friends. Why, Shikamaru hadn't even complained about how troublesome today would be! Then again, he hadn't told them what the mission was.
Four genins and a silver-haired elite jounin froze as a wail pierced the air. They glanced warily at the door. If the crying woke up the baby... Kakashi paled. Fifteen minutes into the mission, he'd decided he would much rather be assigned to an S-rank than to babysitting. Keeping three kids alive for a day between eight shinobi hadn't sounded so hard. Kakashi had thought he was prepared for it. He'd raised his ninken from puppyhood, after all. But he was clueless. You couldn't shake a toddler by the nape of the neck to stop the wailing. And all of the genin were only-childs. Asuma and Hikari kept their collective head above water, but Asuma was handling the six-month old in the nursery. Thankfully, the five-year-old was content to be drawing with Ino and Chouji.
Kakashi watched as his kunoichi quickly picked up the toddler up by their armpits and strode to the kitchen, the farthest room from the nursery. Her teammates, sensei, and friend followed. She signed 'Water' to the Nara heir as she settled the kid on the counter top. She accepted the plastic cup with a smile and addressed the three-year old in a soft voice.
"Here you go, drink some water."
The boy picked up the cup with both hands and tried to get his breathing down. He took a small sip. Hikari ran her fingers through his hair. "Can you tell us what's wrong?"
He sniffled.
"Do you want a hug?"
He nodded miserably. Hikari reached out and wrapped her arms around his small shoulders.
"How does a nap sound?"
The boy looped his arms through her neck. She picked him up and led them to his bedroom. On the other side of the house, the baby screamed.
As soon as his head was on the pillow, she asked "Would you like a story?"
"Yes," he mumbled.
She gestured to Sasuke, who looked too relieved to know he wouldn't be needed to calm down the baby to complain. He picked up a book and started reading.
The rest left the bedroom.
"Was he crying because he wanted to hear a story?" Naruto asked his teammate, wide eyed.
"I think he's only tired and missing his parents."
"How did you know to give him some water?"
Kakashi payed attention. The kid hadn't looked dehydrated to him.
"You can't cry and drink at the same time, Naruto-san."
"So, you tricked him!?"
Kakashi didn't agree with his indignation. In fact, he thought it was rather clever. The jounin eyed the girl. He hadn't known his kunoichi was that ruthless.
"Troublesome. She gave him something to do. Kids tend to follow instructions. He just needed a hug. It's probably the first time his parents leave," the Nara heir explained in Hikari's stead. She nodded.
"Do you think Asuma-sensei has it handled?" she asked warily.
A cry answered her question. They all winced.
"Maa, we've tried everything," Kakashi complained. The Nara's eyes sharpened at his comment. He turned to Hikari.
"I don't think a baby has the exacting standards of your compound."
Hikari blinked. "I'm not my mom, I don't think it'll work."
"We've tried everything else."
She shrugged. "We can try, I guess."
Shikamaru led them to the nursery. Asuma was bouncing the wailing baby up and down. Kakashi hoped the tiny human wouldn't throw up on him.
"Asuma-sensei, may I have the baby? Shikamaru wants us to try something."
The baby changed arms. She cradled him, supporting his head. The Nara reached out and moved one of the baby's hands to his friend's throat and stepped back. Hikari rocked gently and opened her mouth.
Her voice rang sweet and clear over the baby's bawling. Kakashi's eye widened. It wasn't a unique pitch or tone, but it was steady and clearly trained. His student continued to craft a soothing lullaby as she rocked the bundle in her arms. It took a couple of minutes, but the cries started tapering down to a soft whine. The jounin watched as Sasuke came and joined the Nara and Naruto. They all listened in silence to the soft melody. The baby's eyes closed. Hikari put him in his crib and pushed her shoulder against Shikamaru's.
"Good idea," she praised. He smirked.
Ino and Chouji joined them. "She's playing some video games in her room," Chouji announced.
That meant the three kids were down.
They settled down on the living room. Hikari slumped over her cushion, resting most of her side and weight on Shikamaru. The boy let her. Kakashi tried to remember when Shikaku had started acting like a fool in front of Yoshino. He thought it was around the time they made chunin. The masked shinobi despaired. The boy seemed like he was smarter than his father. Unlike Shikaku, he wasn't trying to show off and falling into the river, at least. The Copy Ninja didn't know it that was good or not. It certainly explained his jounin commander's concern for the girl, though. Still, he wasn't sure he liked the lazy Nara for his kunoichi. He resolved to keep an eye on him this week.
"How did you know to do that, Shikamaru?" Asuma asked.
"Hikari and I were once playing at her compound when a dad brought over his crying newborn. Hikari's mom sang her to sleep."
"What did Shikamaru mean, about your compound's standards?" Naruto asked his teammate, curious.
"Mmm." she hummed. "Just that I'm not a singer. I had lessons, but I'm below average."
"And your mom?"
Hikari straightened out a bit. "She's a prodigy," she announced proudly. "Her voice is magnificent. There are really no words for it. Right, Shika?"
Shikamaru nodded.
"Is she disappointed?" Sasuke asked her. "That you're not as good as she is."
Ino glared at him for a moment, before realizing who she was glaring at. Kakashi didn't think Sasuke was trying to be insulting, though.
"Not at all. I mean, I think she hoped I'd be a little better or more interested. Singing isn't necessarily a genetic skill, but some vocal cords disposition is. I didn't get anything," Hikari explained lightly. "Still, a lot of the kids don't follow their parents. My dad's an acrobat, but I chose a different apparatus from him even before I started the Academy. It's not rare at all. Even if a performer's kid becomes a performer, they can choose to be a singer, acrobat, illusionist, aerialist, contortionist, actor... Or they could choose not to be on stage. Their dream could be to work on costumes, make-up, production, or something entirely out of the kyokuba-dan. We don't care as long as kids actually choose something and are passionate about it."
Sasuke looked at her, a bit taken aback. Kakashi knew the Uchihas demanded their kids to be better, stronger. Parents drove their children to surpass them and everyone else. Such freedom of choice was an alien concept to him. If the shinobi was honest, it was, in a smaller scale, a new concept for him too. Clan shinobis expected their own children to become successful shinobi and kunoichis. They had certain liberty as to their arsenal of weapons, but they all learned to master their kekkei genkai to a certain degree. To be led by passion before tradition was foreign.
There was still too much he didn't know about her family. Her blonde friend had perked up when the Nara mentioned visiting her compound. Invitations didn't abound, then. When he'd gone to inspect her home with the Hokage, the Sandaime had made it a point to tell him they'd received permission to do so. They had been escorted to and from the gates. Kakashi hadn't glimpsed a single child on their way. Their escorts had been exceedingly polite. They had only warmed up when the Hokage had introduced him as Hikari's sensei. He wondered how much leeway being her teacher extended to him. Without the Hokage, could he check on her?
He hadn't known the leader was a singer. From Hikari's abilities, he'd assumed both of her parents were acrobats. If the leader didn't need to have physical skills, what talents did they value? How did they decide who led such a diverse group of people?
What went on inside those painted walls?